CHAPTER 1

Dawning the Night of the Witch Hunt—The Morning After

1

Dawn was starting to break on the night that seemed endless.

It had felt eternal. They gulped, intently watching the seconds tick on the clock, shivering against the chilling winds of night—

That was how Iska and his unit spent the night of the witch hunt.

The Paradise of Witches, the Nebulis Sovereignty. Central state.

They were in a forest on the outskirts of the city.

“This was as much of a mess as I’d expected. The press and armed police have swarmed the royal palace. Not that we would ever step foot near it.”

The silver-haired sniper, Jhin, clutched a piece of paper. A newspaper extra, handed out at the station. It contained a report on the happenings in the palace, which matched the predictions of Unit 907.

First, the Imperial forces had invaded the royal palace overnight.

Second, the queen had been critically injured in a battle with a Saint Disciple and was currently undergoing emergency surgery.

Third, several members of the royal family had gone missing. Had the Empire taken them?

Each new detail in the report brought attention to something that had never happened before. That included the Imperial forces’ invasion of the palace and the capture of the Founder’s descendants, the purebreds.

“I knew everything would be pinned on the Imperial forces…,” Iska said bitterly as he held the same newspaper supplement as Jhin.

As reported in the article, it was true Imperial forces had attacked the palace. There was something else, however, that Iska knew hadn’t been reported accurately.

“There were two people behind the coup. That was Elletear and you—the one who invited the Imperial forces here.”

The raid had been abetted by the Hydra, one of the royal families in the Nebulis Sovereignty. The Hydra’s plan to assassinate the queen…shared a common goal with the Empire’s plot to invade the nation.

…In any other circumstance, an invasion by the Imperial forces would have been great news for our unit.

…The Sovereignty is our adversary. It would mean we’d successfully invaded an enemy nation.

Except Unit 907 had agreed to protect Princess Sisbell. The people of the Sovereignty believed that even Sisbell’s kidnapping—orchestrated by the head of the Hydra—was the Empire’s doing.

…A groundless accusation! Not a single citizen of the Sovereignty had realized that the Hydra, royalty in flesh and blood, were after the lives of the queen and princess.

“Iska.” Commander Mismis, who had been peering into the woods, turned around. “All we can hope is that they’ll tell us once they know where Sisbell is, right?”

“Yes. We just have to believe them,” Iska answered.

Sisbell hadn’t been abducted by the Imperial forces, but by the Hydra—by fellow members of the royal family. Unit 907 knew that, as well as…

“You were right…until the very end. I was the one tricked…”

“I’ll go after the House of Hydra. There might be proof…”

…Princess Aliceliese.

The night before, Iska and Alice had tried to engage in another death match. Currently, Iska imagined she was going after the Hydra to find her younger sister’s whereabouts.

“How’s it going over there, Nene?”

“Hmm… Foot traffic is higher, since the day is breaking. I bet some soldiers from Hydra are lurking in the crowds. I imagine they’re waiting for us to arrive.” Nene was standing next to Commander Mismis and holding a pair of binoculars.

They couldn’t be careless or be spotted in the woods. They were certain the Hydra had sent assassins as far as the roads of the countryside.

“Iska, should we keep lying low here?” Nene asked.

“For the time being. But we can’t stay in the woods forever. I think it’d be better for us to move somewhere else to wait…but I’m interested in hearing what you all think.” Iska directed his question at the five girls who had been motionless and quiet during this conversation.

Servants from the Lou family villa. Yumilecia, Ashe, Noel, Sistia, and Nami. The five girls had been pursued by mercenaries from the Hydra. Their eyes were glued to the newspaper, blazing with unbridled rage.

“The headline…,” whispered the eldest of them, Yumilecia, voice shaking.

She balled up the thin paper.

“Is a New Queen in Order?…Tell me you’re joking. Lady Sisbell’s kidnappers have gone too far!”

A news organization only in name. This article had been published by a company colluding with the Hydra, financially speaking.

In other words, it was a coup.

They were attempting to rush the conclave and the selection of a new queen by pinning the Imperial raid on the royal family currently in charge. The five girls could see through Talisman’s scheme just by reading the article.

“I don’t blame you for being upset,” Jhin said, growing impatient. “But we don’t care what happens to the Sovereignty and its administration. We only promised to get back Sisbell. So, where can we hide for the time being?”

“…We should return to the villa,” Yumilecia responded for the five servants. “Like you said, we have no provisions in the woods—no food, no water. And though I am loath to admit it, we need time to rest and recuperate…”

“We can’t go back there.” Jhin shook his head. “It was demolished by that witch—Vichyssoise—and her astral powers. People are going to be all over the grounds, trying to figure out what happened. I think it’s safe to assume the soldiers from the Hydra will be among them. If they see us, they’ll claim we’re stragglers and capture us.”

“No, not the villa. We want to go to the safe house behind it.” Yumilecia was undaunted. “There’s a large forest behind the estate, an area also owned by the Lou. It has a storehouse filled with provisions. We can spend several days there in safety.”

“…Are you sure?” asked Commander Mismis, the leader of their unit, in place of Jhin. “But isn’t that…?”

“Yes. An evacuation site in case we go to war with the Empire. But we need your help. So we’ve reached the decision to lead you there out of necessity.” Yumilecia turned around.

The four servants behind her stood up simultaneously as though waiting for her cue.

“You promised you would prioritize recovering Lady Sisbell above all else. If you betray us—”

“You can have my life,” Iska finished for them.

The servants stared at him with a look that could have been mistaken for animosity. Iska didn’t flinch and answered without hesitation, “We wouldn’t stay in the Sovereignty if we weren’t prepared to put everything on the line to save her. I mean, we could have met up with the Imperial forces to escape with them the other night if we wanted to.”

“……”

“Am I wrong?”

“I suppose you have a point. The fact that you’ve stayed with us is enough to show us that you intend to save Lady Sisbell.” Yumilecia’s lips formed a tiny smile. “We’ll lead you to the safe house. Follow us.”

2

The royal palace of Nebulis.

The Planetary Stronghold. A castle hosting a concentrated number of Sovereign leaders.

It was allegedly constructed by ancient astral arts of crystallized astral powers. Regular fire would not do any harm to the halls. Even damage dealt by a cannonball would be restored overnight.

Toppling it was an impossible feat. For a century, the palace had represented something indestructible. And now, the hundred years of truth had crumbled.

“It was bound to happen…”

The Queen’s Space was the sacred room constructed of stately stone pillars and colorful stained glass, blanketed in carpets the color of wine.

A once sacred space, Alice corrected mentally, sighing.

The sun cast light on the changed scene before them. The carpet had been ripped to shreds. The stained glass panels on the second floor were shattered, unrecognizable. Even the stone pillars had snapped. This was the aftermath of the battle between the queen and the Saint Disciple of the first seat, Joheim.

The outcome of their fight, still fresh on their minds.

“……” Alice avoided looking at the dark bloodstain on the floor—blood shed by the queen and her older sister, Elletear.

This was the nature of war. No battle ended with no blood shed. Aliceliese might have known that in her heart, but she wasn’t too keen on looking at it directly.

“Princess Alice! We have finished extinguishing the fires on the grounds!” One of the royal guards ran into the Queen’s Space, out of breath. “There is still smoke, but there is no threat of the fire spreading. At present, we are continuing our recovery efforts and searching for enemies on the grounds.”

“Thank you. We would be in danger if there were still Saint Disciples in our midst. Please have the Planetary Domiciles accompany the search teams.”

“Understood!” The guard bowed before scurrying off, other soldiers in tow. Alice and Rin watched over them.

“Tell me what you’re thinking, Rin,” Alice requested.

“I think it’s very likely that the Imperial forces have retreated.” Rin stared out into the grounds through the broken windows on the second floor. Her cheeks were still sooty. “Several members of the royal family went missing overnight. Unfortunately, we must assume they have fallen into the hands of the Imperial forces.”

“…The Empire would consider those spoils of battle.”

“If they captured purebreds, they would no longer have a reason to stay in enemy territory. But I’m sure they’re after something else. An ulterior motive.”

“…Yes.” She gritted her teeth.

It had all happened in the span of a single night. In just a few hours, the Nebulis Sovereignty had suffered the worst loss in its entire history. At present, Alice was aware of at least four members of the royal family who had been victims of the attack.

One person was out of commission:

—Queen Mirabella Lou Nebulis IIX: In surgery to stitch up her left arm.

Three were missing:

—House of Lou, Eldest Princess Elletear: Captured by Imperial army.

—House of Lou, Youngest Princess Sisbell: Captured by Imperial army at the villa.

—Head of the Zoa, Growley—MIA. Witnesses wanted.

These weren’t small casualties.

It was grave enough to bring the decline of the country upon them. Now that the Empire had caught purebreds, there was no telling what their next move might be.

…But there’s something happening under the surface.

…And Rin and I are the only ones in the castle who know this.

There was someone behind the plot—traitors who were just as despicable to Alice as the Empire. They were the real villains. They had both betrayed the queen and abducted her little sister, Sisbell.

“This Imperial raid was not just orchestrated by the Empire.”

“The masterminds behind the coup are the Hydra. The head of household attacked and demolished the estate with mages disguised as Imperial soldiers.”

No one would doubt the story that the Imperial forces had taken her sister.

…I mean, I was tricked into thinking that, too.

…Had Iska not told me, I would have directed all my rage at the Empire.

The night before, she had initiated another death match with the Imperial swordsman Iska. The battle had been ruthless, and she hadn’t held back. Though it couldn’t even compare to her ideal crusade, she hadn’t been able to stop herself.

“Let’s stop.”

“I don’t want to fight you when you’ve forgotten who you are, Alice. This isn’t the time for us to engage in battle.”

“……”

“Lady Alice? Lady Alice, are you well?” asked one of the royal guards, which brought her back to her senses.

“Oh yes.”

She had only meant to linger on the memory for a moment, but it seemed more time had elapsed than she’d anticipated.

“My apologies, but you seem exhausted…,” the guard continued.

“No, I’m fine. I was just lost in thought.” She manufactured a smile.

In actuality, she was tired. It was rare even on the battlefield to be actively ready for an entire evening. After giving orders in the queen’s place, Alice’s energy reserves were totally depleted.

“…Right. Would you be kind enough to fetch me a glass of water? My throat is parched from all this talking.”

“At once.”

“And some sugar and caffeine tablets,” Alice added.

The sugar and stimulant would wake her up and ward off her fatigue. There was no time to rest.

…First, I need to secure the inner palace. Then I need to prepare an announcement to give to the people.

…And I need to come up with a plan to save Sisbell in secret.

She gritted her teeth. With the queen out of commission due to an injury, Alice was the only one who could do anything from the House of Lou.

“Is Alice here?”

Clack… A hard heel echoed through the Queen’s Space, marking the entrance of a man in black. A member of the royal family, he hid his face with a metal mask. A counsel to another royal bloodline, the Zoa.

“Lord Mask? What happened to you…?” Alice started to say.

His clothes were in tatters. Alice doubted her eyes when she saw bloodstains. Had he been battling with Imperial forces? The lacerations all over his body, however, had not come from bullets. It looked as though he had been sliced up by a sharp sword, but if that had been the case, the wounds would have been much deeper.

What in the world had harmed him then?

“Oh, I was just dancing. My partner was a mischievous lady.”

“…Was she a Saint Disciple?”

“Who can say? We didn’t have the manners to exchange names. I did make some advances, but she politely turned me down. She must have left the castle already,” Lord Mask replied, looking quite serious. “I have an urgent message for you, the acting queen. We’ve finished our search within the Moon Spire. No Imperial forces remain. We’re about to check the hidden cameras.”

“I’m relieved to see you’re safe.”

Alice wasn’t just saying that. She meant it. They might have been feuding behind the scenes, but they still were blood relatives. She didn’t want anyone to get hurt.

“Safe? I think you’ve misunderstood the situation,” Lord Mask replied, trampling all over her hopes. His voice was at such a volume that Alice and Rin turned toward him in surprise. Even the royal guards turned their attention to him.

“Our palace has been invaded by Imperial forces. Our gardens charred, the blood of our brethren spilled, several people from our family missing—including the head of my household, Growley.” Lord Mask spread his arms, like he was appealing to the royal guards. “And most importantly, our people are stewing in hate and growing restless. And you think we’re safe?”

“……”

“The Zoa have counseled the Lou—more times than I can count. We pleaded with you to let us attack the Empire. Our demands were denied, and as a result, the Imperial forces drew first blood,” Lord Mask said. “So the blame falls on our queen.”

She didn’t even need to ask him what his goal was. That much was obvious—the succession of the queen.

“Then again…” A sigh escaped from the gaps between the mask and his face. “Now isn’t time for this conversation. As one of the Zoa, it’s my top priority to find the head of the house. After all, something isn’t adding up.”

“…I know he has had a long history serving in the military as an astral mage.”

Growley—the possessor of second-generation Vice. There wasn’t a single person in this place who didn’t know about his impressive record.

…I doubt he was captured by the Imperial soldiers.

…Even I have a hard time imagining a Saint Disciple apprehending him.

This explained why the Zoa were concerned. They couldn’t go against the queen or Alice now. Without their leader, it would be unwise to make an enemy out of the Lou.

“By the way—” Lord Mask started to say, but then he stopped immediately and tilted his head.

Another person had appeared in the Queen’s Space.

A gallant man decked in a white suit had made himself known, walking toward them with relaxed strides.

“Lady Alice,” Rin whispered.

“I know, Rin. I should be patient, right?” Alice clenched her hand into a fist and held back her anger. The one to appear in front of her was a member of the Hydra.

“I’m so glad to see you safe, my dear,” said Talisman, the head of household, voice clear. “And I’m indebted to the efforts of the royal guards.”

His chiseled face was dastardly and suave. He didn’t forget to extend his thanks to both Alice and the royal guards.

…Arrogance, personified.

…How dare he? After all he did—abducting my sister and ushering the Imperial forces into our country.

She felt something other than anger—something like awe.

It was perfect. The mastermind behind the plot to overthrow the country had disguised his fangs, devoting himself to playing the role of head of household. How much experience did he need to have to accomplish such a feat?

“Alice, my dear.” Talisman was staring straight at her. “I offer you my condolences, seeing that Elletear and Sisbell have gone missing.”

“Ngh.”

“They’re precious members of our family,” Talisman continued. “I will lend you my powers to find them.”

“…I appreciate that.”

How could he say such a thing after all that he’d done? Had Rin not been there beside her to comfort her, Alice would have flown into a rage.

—Hold back for the time being.

There was no official proof of Talisman’s plan. If she tried to expose his wrongdoings right now, her subordinates would have a hard time believing her. Alice bit her lip and tried to bear it.

“I am so pleased to hear you’re safe, Lord Talisman. Also, there was something I wanted to ask you,” Lord Mask cut in. For once, his words were a saving grace. “I still don’t have the whole story. It seems that the Solar Spire alone had escaped from the Imperial attack. Or so I’ve heard.”

“Yes. They concentrated their attacks on the Queen’s Palace. Had I realized their goal earlier, I would have been able to spare more of my own personnel. Pity.”

“……”

There was a moment of silence. Lord Mask and Talisman. The two men—both rather tall—were facing each other, tension in the air between them.

“And one other thing. Our head of household, Growley, has been missing since dawn,” Lord Mask continued. “Do you have any clue as to what has happened to him?”

“No, but I could send out a search party,” Talisman replied. “If I learn of anything, I will notify you immediately.”

“Thank you. In that case, I will be taking my leave.”

Lord Mask was the first to retreat.

Though the conversation had been a short one, it gave Alice some clues she could work with.

…Does he know?

…The Zoa must suspect the Hydra were involved in the Imperial forces’ attack, too.

But they had no proof, so they couldn’t do anything about it.

They were in the same position as Alice. The only difference was that Alice was certain of the culprit while the Zoa were still piecing it together.

“Well, Alice. We’ll overcome these unprecedented times together,” Talisman offered.

“…Yes,” Alice replied.

Talisman left the Queen’s Space. Alice was annoyed by his confident stride.

“Princess Alice, the queen has woken up!” called out one of the medical unit nurses clothed in white, running in their direction. “We’ve finished operating on her arm. She is still under anesthetic, but I don’t believe that’ll get in the way of a short conversation between the two of you.”

“Thank you. I will head over right away.” Alice exchanged a look with Rin and nodded. “Rin…”

“I’ll do things according to plan.” Rin bowed and passed by Alice’s side.

She was going to the villa. Iska had claimed that assassins had destroyed the structure, and she wanted to go see it with her own eyes.

…I’m counting on you, Rin.

…Make sure neither the Hydra nor the Zoa suspect where you’re going.

“Lady Alice, to the queen’s room,” the nurse urged.

“Yes,” Alice answered. “Take me there immediately.”

Nebulis Sovereignty. Star Spire.

The private quarters of the head of household for the Lou: the Stardust Skyscraper. This space had been passed along from the first-generation leaders of the Nebulis Sovereignty down to the Lou.

In the living room, Queen Mirabella Lou Nebulis IIX sat staring out the window. She looked even better than Alice had expected. The overnight surgery was a success. Her left arm was wrapped in bandages.

“Mother…”

“Pathetic. I’m not even in the mood to make excuses.” The queen’s voice almost came out like a sigh. “I thought I vowed to fulfill my duties as queen… When did I become so weak?”

She covered her left arm with her right. The queen turned to her daughter with slightly red eyes.

…Were you crying, Mother?

…Or is that because you were under anesthetic for so long?

Alice assumed the queen had heard about the events of the night before: that her eldest daughter had been hauled off by a Saint Disciple, that her youngest daughter had been attacked when the Imperial forces had invaded the family villa.

“Doctors, could I have a moment alone with my mother?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” They filed out of the room.

After listening to their footsteps disappear down the hall, Alice locked the door.

“Mother, there is something important I must tell you.”

“…I’m prepared for anything. Especially given the circumstances, I know it can’t be good. I’m even prepared for my own daughter to reprimand me for my conduct.”

“It isn’t good news.” Alice looked straight at her mother, who let out a self-deprecating chuckle. “But it could possibly turn this whole situation on its head.”

“What?”

“I will recover Sisbell. Not from the Imperial forces, but from the Hydra.”

“…Alice? What did you just say?” Life seemed to return to the queen’s voice. Her once emotionless eyes gleamed and steadily regained focus as she scanned her daughter’s face.

“The Hydra brought the Imperial forces upon us, Mother.”

“……”

“Their troops attacked our villa costumed as Imperial forces. Five servants witnessed it, and they are safe.”

“…Alice, can I really trust this information?”

“I swear it on my right to succeed the throne. You will know for yourself once you see the five of them,” Alice told the queen, who pondered what her daughter had said.

Alice kept going, her voice firm. “And we have circumstantial evidence. We can’t assume that the Solar Spire just so happened to escape the Imperial raid last night. And you must know, Mother, that the attack also released the witch—Vichyssoise—from her cell.”

“”

“The Hydra must have known about the invasion. Planned it years in advance, in fact.”

“…Both sides will resort to anything, it seems.” After a while, the queen let out a sigh. “I also suspected the Hydra were involved in the coup. I was too optimistic to believe the matter would be settled by Sisbell’s return, but I never would have suspected they would call in the Imperial forces to stop her…”

“Yes. All we have is circumstantial evidence, and that includes the eyewitness reports of our servants. We don’t have decisive evidence that can bring them down.”

“So that’s why they took Sisbell.” The queen nodded.

Sisbell’s Illumination could reproduce the past in three dimensions. If they could just recover the youngest princess, they would be able to show that the Hydra were colluding with the Imperial forces, which would redeem the Lou. The administration under the queen would regain its foothold.

“Thank you, Alice. I see the situation now, though I do not have all the details. And coming back to your initial point, we will retrieve Sisbell… Of course I would do anything I could for my daughter, even if it wasn’t in my best interest.”

“On that point, Mother, I seek your wisdom and insight.”

Alice looked out the window, staring at the Queen’s Palace—a domineering presence—and the Solar Spire, hazy behind it.

“Do you have any idea where Sisbell might be held?”

Everything was white.

The floor, the ceiling, the walls—all painted over in untarnished white. Even the bed on which she had been laid was the same color.

“…How long are the Hydra going to keep me cooped up in here?”

Her voice bounced off the walls.

In a doorless bedroom, Sisbell started yet another monologue in her glorified cell, which was only a few yards wide in all directions.

Sisbell Lou Nebulis IX. Her face was as cute as a heroine from a fairy tale. Her strawberry-blond hair, lustrous. Her large eyes were determined, princess-like.

“I won’t bow down. This is nothing…compared to the cold Imperial jails.”

She had a bed. A bed that was even outfitted with impeccably clean sheets. This was hospitable, unlike her time in the Empire.

…They’ll keep me locked away here.

…But they would never rough up a princess. Otherwise, they would have to answer for that.

So, that was the purpose of the room. But what did they plan on doing with her?

“I thought they were attempting to silence me, but if they’re keeping me hostage, that can’t be their plan…”

Were they planning to use her as a hostage against the Lou if push came to shove?

“O-oh, right!” Sisbell snapped her head up. Why hadn’t she thought of it until now? “I just need to use Illumination to see everything that happened up until I was brought to this room…!”

Who from the Hydra brought her here? She could work with that bit of information and figure out how to escape from this doorless room.

“O planet.” She planted her hand on her chest, placing it slightly above her small breasts. The astral crest started to emit a faint light.

“Please show me your pa—?!”

Sisbell’s breath caught, unable to continue.

A door had appeared right in front of her eyes—oblong and rising from the pristine walls that once held nothing.

No, wait. Correction: The door had always been there.

…Was I just too dense to notice it?

…Was this a trick to prevent me from noticing it or was it concealed with camouflage using an advanced astral power?

They must have done it while she’d been unconscious. She hated to admit she hadn’t noticed they had addled her mind using astral power.

“Don’t play games with me. Now that your power has worn off, I imagine you intend to show yourself. Come out!” She pointed at the door.

The door creaked open in front of her.

3

Central state. Woodlands.

They were at an abandoned storehouse, seemingly left unused for decades.

Iska doubted his eyes when he saw past the rusted door.

“…So it just looks like an old shed on the outside.”

The room within was divided by thick concrete walls. Iska spotted a state-of-the-art communications device inside. The center of the room functioned as a meeting space, and a pile of boxes storing emergency rations and water were stacked in the corner. He would have mistaken it for an Imperial base.

“You’ve got a war room? Even Imperial conference rooms aren’t this nice,” Jhin observed, locking his gaze on a concrete wall lined with machine guns.

Even now that the villa had been destroyed, it was still possible to continue commanding the military from this safe house without any obstacles.

“Whoa! Hey, Commander, this communications device runs on a seventh-generation G system. It’s the newest type of wireless device capable of driving an unmanned car up to sixty miles—with super-low latency. They don’t have these anywhere in the Empire except in the capital—” Nene started to say.

“Please remember the situation we’re in.” The servants stared her down.

“…I’m sorry,” Nene uttered before becoming silent, dejected.

“This is the safe house operated by the Lou. Since it’s in the woods, it’s a one-story structure, but there are two basement levels, so it’s decently spacious. However…” The oldest servant, Yumilecia pointed to the stairs at the back that led down to the basement. “I think it’s obvious that this building houses Sovereign secrets—ones we don’t want anyone from the Empire knowing. Especially in any areas below us now.”

“Noted,” Iska said. “We won’t go into the basement; we won’t even go near the stairs.”

He looked beside him. Once Commander Mismis nodded, Iska looked back at the servants. “Does that work for you?”

“Yes. I believe you’ve already realized that everything you say and do at this base will be under surveillance, so the royal family can review it at a later time.”

A surveillance camera glared from a corner of the ceiling. Iska had noticed it the moment he’d stepped into the safe house.

“You know what they say: Do nothing suspicious, and there will be nothing to suspect. Please refrain from doing anything that would make us question your conduct.”

“As long as you behave, we all intend to treat you as guests. It’s what Lady Sisbell ordered, after all,” said another girl who had stepped forward from behind Yumilecia. She held clean towels in both her hands. “We will lend you rooms. They are all en suites, so please use the showers while we still have time.”

“While we have time?”

“Miss Rin will arrive in two hours.” The servant was facing away from them, gaze fixed on the communications device on the table. “I’m sure she will have directions on how to rescue Lady Sisbell.”

“First, I will hear what they have to say. Then I will give Lady Alice an update…”

These woods were owned by the House of Lou.

Rin dragged a suitcase along as she quickly walked down the trails that had not been maintained for the past few decades. She had changed into a simple black suit before leaving the palace and taken a taxi to get to the outskirts, rather than take an official car. From there, she had walked through the countryside.

All were precautions to dodge prying eyes.

There would be Talisman’s soldiers undercover around the palace and near the villa. These measures were taken to avoid being spotted by him.

“…Those damned Hydra. Now they’ve really done it.”

Only minutes before she had entered the woods, she had caught a glimpse of the Lou Erz mansion over the wall. Rin found herself speechless. The castle had been destroyed beyond recognition. In a little under a day, the stately residence had become rubble, a shell of what it was the night before.

“…This is the work of Vichyssoise.”

The castle caved in as though a cannonball had shot through it. Based on the debris from the damage, the witch must have used her trump card, the Magic Shot of Corpses. Rin could tell by the destruction: The estate had been attacked the night before by the assassins from the Hydra, led by Talisman.

…I suppose the silver lining is that the servants are safe.

…Though I hate to be indebted to that Imperial swordsman.

She reminded herself she needed the former Saint Disciple’s help at this moment.

“…I hate to ask him for anything.”

But the priority was rescuing Princess Sisbell. Rin had been reluctant to agree with Alice’s point that they needed Iska’s help; ultimately, she had agreed to do it out of necessity.

Rin hated the Hydra as much as she hated the Imperial forces who had invaded the royal palace.

“You’ll see, Hydra. We’ll make you pay,” Rin told herself just as a rusted storehouse came into view. It was the safe house unknown to the other royal bloodlines. “It must have been a full year since I’ve been here…”

She used a spare key to open the metal lock. Beyond the door, which had been camouflaged with rust, was a concrete room outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment.

“It’s me. I’ve arrived earlier than… Huh?”

Rin blinked. She didn’t see anyone in the meeting area in front of her nor any sign of the five servants, Iska, or the rest of his unit. The half-empty water bottles were the only indication they were somewhere in the place.

“They must be meeting in a back room.”

She had already told them she was coming. They had to be discussing ways to rescue Sisbell in anticipation of her arrival.

“I see. Not bad for Imperial subjects. I might even say that’s praiseworthy.”

Rin hauled her suitcase farther into the room. She could hear movement behind the many doors down the hallway and placed a hand on one of them.

“It’s me. I’m coming in.”

“Huh? Is that voice…Rin?!”

It was Iska speaking beyond the door. She knew they were meeting in one of these rooms.

“W-wait! Wait a sec! I’m—”

“What? I’m coming in.”

She opened the door to find Iska, as expected. Except…her vision went white when she saw an unfamiliar side of him.

“Um…I was taking a shower…”

“”

He wasn’t wearing a thing. As he claimed, he must have gone to freshen up.

A girl of tender age, Rin wasn’t unfazed upon seeing a naked boy of the same age. He looked more muscular without his clothes. And his black hair clung to his forehead, slick from the water, making him seem more manly than—

“Wait! No!” With a flushed face, Rin threw the suitcase she held at Iska. “Wh-wh-what do you think you’re doing?! I—I’m…seventeen years old! A young maiden! And you’re an exhibitionist!”

“You were the one who walked in on me!”

“This is your fault!”

“In what world?!” Iska rushed behind a chest of drawers. “We were attacked by assassins last night. If we don’t clean out our wounds, they’ll fester!”

“…Anyway, put on some clothes. I’ll turn away.” Rin could hear the quiet swishing of his clothes, which made her more embarrassed. “I have something to tell you. You can listen while you dress.”

She cleared her throat. “Lady Alice informed me of the events that transpired at the villa last night. I’m here to confirm the story with the servants.”

“…Uh-huh.”

“And something else: a personal question for you.”

It was a thing Rin was curious about, a question beyond their social standing—one that she wanted to ask the swordsman as a fellow fighter.

“Is it true that you battled Lady Alice last night?”

“……” The boy behind her was quiet. “It’s true. Alice was convinced that everything was the fault of the Imperial forces. And she said she couldn’t forgive me, either.”

“So Lady Alice must have intended to actually stop you.”

“She didn’t hold back. She was merciless.”

“…I see.” A sigh—relieved and bittersweet—escaped from Rin’s lips.

“What’s the sigh for?”

“I’m relieved. I’ll be honest with you; I was worried Lady Alice had taken such a liking to you that she would have held back.”

Rin turned around and found Iska, fully dressed, in the middle of a shrug.

“Yeah, right. You have nothing to be worried about. She’s not that soft, and I wouldn’t want our relationship to be any other way.”

“That’s why I said I was relieved. And this is contradictory, but…” Rin shrugged, just like Iska. “I can’t believe you made it out of the fight unscathed. At this moment, it gives me some hope, knowing how stupidly strong you are.”

“…Because of the thing with Sisbell?”

“Obviously. To rescue her from the Hydra, I’m willing to ask for your help—circumstantially.”

She picked up her suitcase from where it had been thrown to the ground. Rin unzipped it, revealing it to be empty.

“Put all of your belongings in here,” she ordered. “We’ll be going on the move.”

“Again? But we just got here.”

“We’re too far from the royal palace. It’s not suitable for infiltrating the Hydra’s base.”

“Gotcha…”

“We’re leaving for the city. End of story. Got that, guys?” Rin turned to the open door.

Beyond it were the servants, who had clustered around it once they heard her talking, as well as Commander Mismis, Nene, and Jhin.

“We will prepare to depart immediately. There is no telling how long Lady Sisbell will remain unharmed.”